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Press Release

Canadian Up-and-Comer Shawn Ashmore Stars in Disney Channel Original Movie CADET KELLY With Hilary Duff and Christy Carlson Romano

VANCOUVER August 23, 2001

21-year-old actor Shawn Ashmore (X-Men) is hotter than the Ontario weather he's been filming in. Ashmore stars along with Hilary Duff (Lizzie McGuire) and Christy Carlson Romano (Even Stevens) in the live-action original Disney Channel movie Cadet Kelly that began production on July 30. Ashmore, however, didn't report to duty until later after spending the month of July and early part of August in "boot camp", preparing for his role as Cadet Major Brad Rigby. "It was really good I took this role because I wanted to do this for the experience. These guys have been training for years Will Bates was our military coordinator for Cadet Kelly and he comes from Robert Land Academy. I also got to train with several of the students from the same Academy and who are in the movie as well. The drill team spent the last month training in studio space that was like a hangar. To start, I sat down with Will for a couple of days talking about how to be a cadet I even took voice culture lessons to learn how to project like a drill sergeant." Ashmore will spend the rest of the month of August filming Cadet Kelly, which is scheduled to premiere in the first quarter of 2002.

In Cadet Kelly, fourteen-year-old Kelly Collins (Duff) has it all. The good-hearted Greenwich Village native is hip and never been more popular with her friends. At home things are just as spectacular, until her mom decides to remarry the head of the George Washington Military Academy. It isn't long before Kelly and her mom have to relocate to upstate New York, and Kelly is ordered to turn in her designer duds for revolting fatigues and change into Cadet Kelly. Nevertheless, Kelly decides to make the best of the situation and tackle her new life with vigor. Military school will definitely be tough, especially when notorious Upperclassman Capt. Jennifer Stone (Romano) sets her sights on breaking the newest cadet.... but Kelly will prove that she is tougher.

Bob Shapiro and Jerry Leider are producing Cadet Kelly in association with Disney Channel. The script was written by Gail Parent and Michael Walsh and will be directed by Larry Shaw.

Shawn Ashmore plays Brad Rigby, his seventh leading role in a movie. Ashmore was nominated for a Gemini Award for Best Performance in 1994 for his lead role in CBC's Guitarman. Another of Ashmore's most notable characters came in the form of a supporting role when he played Anna Paquin's schoolroom friend, "Bobby" Drake/Iceman, in 20th Century Fox's hit feature X-Men. Ashmore got to both welcome "Rogue" to Mutant High while handing her a rose made out of ice, and frighten her away from the safety of the school when he becomes embodied by "Mystique" (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos). The young and very talented actor has also already been a series lead on three television shows (Animorphs was very popular and ran for two seasons on YTV in Canada and Nickelodeon in the U.S.) as well as guest starring on many other series.

Along with numerous credits, the young actor has many places he calls "home" Ashmore's busy schedule has kept the Richmond-born actor on the constant "fly" between Vancouver, Toronto and Los Angeles.